The True Amittyville Horror Story
It was Wednesday November 13, 1974 that a home on Ocean Ave would literally become the final resting place for six members of the De Feo family. One by one they were all shot dead as they laid in their beds sleeping. The man responsible for their deaths, Ronald “Butch” De Feo Jr. son and brother to the victims that were killed that November night.
Ronald DeFeo Jr also known as Ronnie, was raised in a middle class family and was the oldest of four children. Despite being raised in a financially stable family, Ronnies relationship with his parents, most notably with his father, would eventually lead him to live a life full of hate and rebellion. The older Defeo was a very controlling and temperamental man, who would verbally and physically abuse Ronnie and his siblings.
During the trial for the murder of his family, Ronnie would be diagnosed by Dr. Harold Zolan as a person who suffered from antisocial personality disorder. Antisocial personality disorder is characterized as being a mental health condition in which a person has a long pattern of manipulating, exploiting, or violating the rights of others. In chapter 3 of “Serial Murders and Their Victims” we learn that people with ASPD experience fighting during childhood, theft, excessive drug and alcohol abuse and reckless regard for the safety of self or others just to name a few. In the course of the interview Ronnie admits to being an alcoholic, stating that he began drinking scotch at the age of 15. We also learn that about 5 to 6 months prior to the murders he was drinking up to a fifth os scotch a day. While at the same time being using drugs such as heroin and LSD. All these being symptoms commonly found in people with personality disorder...
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...d and two; that his mother was shot only after she reached for a gun. This leads me to believe that there is a possibility Ronnie may have had suffered a brief moment of psychosis. In chapter 3 of “Serial killers and their Victims” psychosis is defined as; a severe form of mental disease in which the individual suffers from a severe break with reality and may experience dangerous behavior (p73). Many may believe that Ronnie is just a pathological liar and that nothing he says is credible. I on the other hand believe to an extent that not only did Ronnie suffer from a severe break in reality but that he also may have been delusional and at one point even hallucinated. I speculate that Ronnie was delusional in the sense he felt he needed to kill his father before his father got a chance to killing him.
Works Cited
serial killers and their victims. Eric W. Hickey
been killed in the work camp. A boy had escaped so they lined up all the boys and shot
The book Murder in the Bayou: Who Killed the Women Known as the Jeff Davis 8?, written by independent journalist and private investigator Ethan Brown, tells the horrific true story of the bayou town of Jennings, Louisiana located in the heart of the Jefferson Davis parish. During the four year duration between 2005 and 2009, the town of Jennings was on edge after the discovery of the bodies of eight murdered women were found in the filthy canals and swamps. The victims became known as the “Jeff Davis 8.” For years, local law enforcement suspected a serial killer, and solely investigated the murders based on that theory alone. The victims were murdered in varying manors, but when alive they all shared many commonalities and were connected to
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The day was November 22, 1963 in the city of Dallas,Texas with thousands of John F. Kennedy supporters crowding the sidewalks waiting to see the beloved man. John F. Kennedy was scheduled to ride through downtown Dallas in a topless car. As thousands of fans of JFK watched him stroll through the streets, in just a split second a great day would be flipped upside down as one of the most devastating date in history. It all began when John entered his car and started the parade at approximately 11;45 am. He went through the streets of Dallas into he turned the corner and started heading down Elm Street. At about 12:05pm there was a shot from a building window that went straight through Kennedy’s neck and into his back. At this exact moment November 22, 1963 will be known as an historic event. Overall JFK was a beloved president with millions of followers, he was assassinated by a man of the name Lee Harvey
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The Menendez boys grew up in a rich household. The family lived a very luxurious lifestyle. Kitty and Jose lived in Beverly Hills in a mansion and also owned a house with 14 acres in Calabasas, California.They had anything anyone could possibly want; lots of cars, lots of land, a super nice huge home, two loving sons, and most of all, lots of money. Money seemed to be the motive here, as only a few days after their parents murder, -Eric and Lyle went on spending spree’s, buying anything and everything they could get their hands on. It was August 20, 1989 when Jose and Kitty’s lives ended. The couple popped in a movie and settled down to watch it for the night and were sleeping when the shooting happened. Lyle and Eric had “went out” for the evening but soon we learned what their plan for the night really was.The first shot that was fired hit Jose in the elbow, the second in his arm, and the third shot was fired from a shotgun, straight to the back of Jose’s head. After the first shots, Mrs. Menendez had awoken. She tried to escape but the gun was fired and she was shot in the leg and arm. Falling to the ground in pain, Kitty tried to get up again and escape but she was covered in blood and started slipping, only to be shot again. None of her shots were fatal enough so her a...
Once the effects of the alcohol wore off you went back to being your level minded self correct? Your mother was an alcoholic and she was often too intoxicated to save you from the beatings your father gave you. At age six you were orphaned to a family where the abuse continued only this time it was sexual. This abuse continued well into your teenage years. But my concern is, Mr.McNeil, did you or did you not continue this cycle of abuse with your own children?” I all that was said McNeil looked around the room, took a deep breath, wiped the falling tear with his forearm and said “I NEVER laid a hand on my children,